About Me

My name is Daniel Claridge and I have been training in martial arts for most of my life. I started with Judo and submission grappling as a child and progressed through the ranks and didn’t do too bad in competitions. But I wanted something more and after trying many different martial arts I settled for Jiu Jitsu and with my Judo background this made the transition easier. Judo will always be my first love and I think a great foundation to have to complement any martial art. I have trained in Jiu Jitsu for many years and it is the base of what is now JLD MMA and Self defence. But while training this traditional style which is very effective, some of the techniques weren’t holding up under pressure testing and I was relying on my Judo in close quarter situations and I found that I was becoming reliant on the Gi (the traditional uniform wore by the students and instructors) to grab to pull off most techniques. This to me was disturbing as being a black belt (which at the time I thought was all knowing), I was not able to defend myself effectively which brought me back down to earth. So I discussed this with my fellow instructor and suggested we do more non GI and real life approach and incorporate some ground work which was dismissed for the traditional route. This was a concern for me as this lead to a false sense of security which I learnt first-hand for myself, and there was no adaptations in the techniques or for the students physical abilities.

At this point I decided that I would go my separate way and JLD MMA and Self defence was born. Using my knowledge of the arts I’ve trained in, my personal training background (Body mechanics) and having worked closely with other self protection systems, I have devised 2 syllabus’s which have changed and adapted over the years the club has been running and hopefully will continue to do so with input by other instructors and feedback from the students. Although I am the instructor, I am still always learning myself and this is the concept behind my training. You must always be open minded, always willing to learn and leave your ego at the door. What you learn must work for you and for your body. There is always more than one way to do something.

The MMA syllabus is designed like a traditional grading system but without the traditional GI, set in stone moves or ineffective moves that are reliant on clothing grips. Many fighting styles are also incorporated and all techniques work from your body’s automated reaction to an attack. Incorporating Throws, Locks, Takedowns, Groundwork, instinctive Striking and Blocking drills in each belt proved by pressure testing. To keep in the spirit and respect for the systems from which these moves come from, the black belt is achieved in the traditional way with a Gi and the grading is exactly the same as the grading I submitted and took when I started JLD MMA and Self Defence.

The Self Defence Syllabus is taught completely different and is broken down in to 4 sections Beginner, intermediate with two Advance sections. This is for fast learning and can be taught in a course form or for continued learning.

This has now been change for the following approach. but the content is more or less the same.

The beginners section deals with the basics principle of self defence and gives the student good tools to deal with a conflict situation in a short period of time by keeping things simple and effective. Covering the 4 stages of self defence and not being a target, Risk and threat managment, precursors to violent behaviour and dealing with fear. Stance’s, the fence and the flinch reaction with striking, blocking and targets of opportunities along with techniques to deal with the most common attacks.

The intermediate section deals with restraints and control, standing grappling, control and balance points with weight distribution along with more information on knife defence and how to deal with less common attacks like hair pulls, bear hugs and rear chokes ect.

The advance section is broken in to 2. The first one dealing with attacks in different environments like on the ground, whilst sitting and against the wall ect. It also deals with 3rd party defence so dealing with threats to friends or loved ones. It also covers multiple attacker theory with more vigorous pressure testing scenarios.

The second section deals with weapons and how to deal with threats and attacks from a range of different weapons along with the use of weapons for defensive purpose and legal alternative.

I’m very proud of how this system has developed and very thankful for all the help and support from others along the way. I’m looking forward to the future and continued working with them and I’m looking forward to see the first JLD MMA Black belt and the first JLD Self defence instructor and developing the system further.

To miss quote Darwin

“It’s not the strongest that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one that is the most willing to change.”